- Thread your needle, double-knot the end of the string, and leave about 4 inches of excess thread.

- String Peeps and jelly beans in whatever order you like. (Note: I started with a jelly bean to hold the knot, and kept the number of jelly beans to a minimum because they do add quite a bit of weight to the string. Also, your needle and string will become sticky, so dab vegetable oil on a paper towel and coat the string as needed.)

- When you reach a desired garland length, cut and double knot the thread. Leave about 4 inches of extra thread.

- Attach a grosgrain bow to each end by tying your excess thread around each bow.

There’s lots to love about this edible garland. You can use it as a decoration for your mantel, table, chandelier, mirror, window, back of a parsons chair, or Easter tree … plus it’s a great craft for kids during spring break or on Easter Sunday.

Originally, I set out to string Sixlets, but they cracked when met with a needle. Oak Leaf’s beautiful 1-inch green, purple, and shimmer gold gumballs worked like a charm!

To puncture both sides of the gumballs, I used a razor sharp upholstery tack. Not one shell cracked in the process. Miracle!

Next, I threaded a wide-eyed embroidery needle with 1/4-inch purple ribbon and pulled it through each gumball with a little help from pliers.

And, just as One Charming Party suggested, I tied a knot in between gumballs, and finished off each necklace with a bow. (Note: Gumballs do get heavy when strung together, so I kept each necklace to 10 “beads.”)

Based on prelim feedback, “Mardi Gum” necklaces are serious conversation starters, so start your Mardi Gras party with them.

Now that the 2011 Sweets & Snacks EXPO has come in for a landing, and I’ve had a chance to sift through my notes scribbles, candy samples, and manufacturer marketing materials, I have a few more confectionery wunderkinds that need to be shared.

I’ve been a fan of Anne Taintor’s vintage/irreverent accessories for a number of years and I came to know Knock Knock stationery and accessories a few months ago while holiday shopping. I fell in love with Knock Knock’s “WTF” self-inking stamp and post-it notes.

Here’s a peek at both brands’ designs, now appearing on chocolate bar wrappers (you might recognize the artwork):

My favorite chocolate bar in the lineup is the “99 Ways to Survive the Holidays.” I may gift a few of these to myself this holiday season and follow suggestion No. 69, “Up the dosage.”

According to Amy Goldsmith, a spokesperson for the PRAIM Group, the bars are shipping to retail stores as of today, so look for them on Candy.com shortly.

Dippin’ Ice Cream Candy and Flix Mix
Imaginings 3, Inc. (Flix Candy brand)
When I stepped into the Imaginings 3/Flix Candy booth and saw signage for the company’s new Dippin’ Ice Cream Candy, I was skeptical. My kids have tapped my wallet multiple times for the expensive Dippin’ Dots ice cream pellets at baseball games, so seeing the brand in a candy format didn’t make me jump for joy. Plus, if I was going to pick an ice cream brand to morph into a candy, I’d lean toward Ben & Jerry’s.

Even so, I plunged ahead with a sample of the Cookies ‘n Cream Dippin’ Ice Cream candy (it’s also available in Banana Split). The product, which is made in the USA and available in a 2.6-ounce theater box and 1.6-ounce pouch, is a blend of tiny cookie bits and equally tiny cream bits—think Oreo cookie and its creamy white middle cut into teeny-tiny round dots. The Banana Split variety is blend of chocolate, banana, strawberry, and vanilla cream bits.

Bottom line, the Cookies ‘n Cream Dippin’ Ice Cream candy was quite a bit better than I expected. The cookie bits had a surprisingly good crunch and the creamy bits weren’t sticky or too stiff. I would sneak them into the movies.

Also sneak-in worthy is Flix Candy’s Flix Mix, a combination of crisp rice cereal coated with real milk chocolate and peanut butter, then dusted with powdered sugar. Flix Mix tastes remarkably like the no-bake Chex Muddy Buddies (also known as “Puppy Chow”) that infiltrates most offices and cookbooks during the holidays. If you are a sweet cereal mixer, you won’t be disappointed.

Flix Mix is available in a 2.2-ounce theater box and 4.5-ounce peg bag.

Shimmer Gumballs
SweetWorks (Oak Leaf Brand)SweetWorks‘ new Shimmer Gumballs were one of the prettiest candies at last week’s Sweets & Snacks EXPO.

Julie Davidson, the company’s eastern regional sales manager, created a beautiful candy buffet table in the middle of the SweetWorks booth that showed off the pearly round gems (see pics below).

I could see these shimmering gumballs strung into garland or necklaces for parties … or displayed in apothecary jars at Tiffany’s. They are that glam.

SweetWorks’ Shimmer Gumballs are available in bulk in lime green (my favorite!), bright pink, lavender, powder blue, yellow, orange, and white. Starting in July, the gumballs will also be available in 8-ounce bags as part of SweetWorks’ new Celebration line.

Dorval Premium Collection Chocolate Sticks
Dorval Trading Co., Ltd.Dorval Trading Co. now has its own line of all-natural chocolate sticks, which replaces the importing company’s Rademaker chocolate sticks from Holland. The new Dorval Premium Collection Chocolate Sticks are made with real chocolate and are packaged in 2.64-ounce boxes fit for gifting.

Of the four varieties in this line (Dark Chocolate, Milk Chocolate, Mint Dark Chocolate, and Caramel Milk Chocolate), the Caramel Milk Chocolate sticks are the most interesting. They aren’t filled with caramel, but rather the flavor is infused in the chocolate.

Normally, I’m not into flavor infusions when it comes to chocolate—give me the straight dope—but the caramel flavoring in these solid sticks isn’t overpowering or cloying. The chocolate is good quality, and reminds me of Guittard’s smooth milk chocolate. Perhaps it is.

Rumor has it that Buffalo, NY-based SweetWorks, Inc. is the world’s largest gumball manufacturer.

Mariah Kerwin, SweetWorks’ brand manager, confirms that the rumor is indeed true, but qualifies that SweetWorks is the world’s largest “quality” gumball manufacturer and pumps out an enormous number of gumballs for its own Oak Leaf and Bubble King brands as well as other companies on contract.

Gumballs aren’t the only specialty at SweetWorks, though. SweetWorks began in 1956 as Niagara Chocolates. Niagara manufactured everyday and seasonal molded chocolate products and still does today under the SweetsWorks umbrella. In total, there are six major brands that fall under this golf-sized umbrella, including Niagara Chocolate, Oak Leaf, Sixlets, Bubble King, Ovation, and Florida Tropic. A seventh brand, Radz, is also about to take cover (more on Radz below).

Over the last 10 years, SweetWorks has been growing at a brisk pace. The company’s nostalgic Sixlets—a brand purchased from The Hershey Company in 2003—started out as a penny candy, but has become a “must-have” item on candy buffets now that the tiny candy-coated chocolate balls are available in a rainbow of single colors and pearlized finishes. Sixlets are consistently a top seller at Candy.com.

More growth is on the way, too. At next week’s Sweets & Snacks EXPO, SweetWorks will be launching two new product lines and a new flavor in its Ovation truffle sticks line. All three product lines have distinctly different target markets:

Kid-friendly: SweetWorks’ new Radz line of 250+ collectible toy dispensers come in a variety of everyday and seasonal characters. Each Radz figure has interchangeable parts and dispenses colorful candy from its tongue, hence the tagline, “Fun For Your Tongue.™” Additionally, Radz has a social media component and Web-based interactivity for kids at RadzWorld.com (think Webkinz meets Candy Land). If you are attending the 2011 Sweets & Snacks EXPO, head to SweetWorks booth #1709 and get a Radz password to demo the product online. The first series of Radz to appear in the marketplace will be a limited edition Christmas Reindeer and Polar Bear. Both toy and candy are blister-packed to create a 3.04-ounce set.

Party-friendly: For party planners, SweetWorks’ new “Celebration” line is designed to make candy buffets, themed events, party favors, and cookie/cupcake/cake decorating pretty darn simple … and color-coordinated. “Celebration” includes 8-ounce retail-ready bags of gumballs, 14-ounce retail-ready bags of Sixlets, and 4.5-ounce jars of Sixlets and Pearls—all in bright, shiny single colors. A few shakes of a jar would make an ice cream cone even better.

Gift-friendly: SweetWorks’ line of high-end Ovation truffle sticks in Mint, Irish Cream, and Orange flavors, is getting a caffeinated sibling, Cappuccino. The dark chocolate Ovation Cappuccino sticks are all-natural and made with real coffee beans. Packaging for all Ovation products is beautiful, but not over-the-top frilly, so you will score points with both male and female foodie friends if you gift them. Each 4.4-ounce box of Cappuccino Ovation includes 40 sticks.

Next week, Tues., May 24 – Thurs., May 26, is the 2011 Sweets & Snacks EXPO in Chicago! It’s America’s largest candy show, and Candy.com will be blogging and Twittering about new candies, trends, candy business news, and anything else worth sharing—live from the candy carpet all three days. Tune in!